Shelf life of liquid organic formulations

Abstract

The study entitled “Shelf life of liquid organic formulations” was carried out in the Department of Agronomy, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara during 2015 - 2016. The objectives were to find out the shelf life of liquid organic formulations by analyzing the chemical and biological properties, and the effect of duration of storage of these formulations on growth and yield of cucumber variety. There were two experiments viz., influence of ageing on quality of liquid organic formulations and influence of shelf life of Jeevamrutham and Panchagavyam on growth and yield of cucumber variety Pusa Uday. The first experiment consisted of 11 treatments where Panchagavyam and Jeevamrutham were stored for 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 20 and 24 weeks. The fresh preparations as well as the stored formulations were analyzed for various parameters. The fresh preparation of Panchagavyam was light green with fruity smell whereas that of Jeevamrutham was moderate green with mild foul odour and became darker green and brownish green respectively with foul odour at the end of storage. The surface mould growth and maggots were observed in Panchagavyam only. An increasing trend in pH and EC of Panchagavyam and Jeevamrutham was noticed during the period of storage. Among the treatments, 20 weeks old preparation of Panchagavyam recorded the highest nitrogen content of 0.21 per cent. There was no significant variation in nitrogen content of Jeevamrutham on storage and was in the range of 0.3 to 0.8 per cent. In general, P content of liquid organic formulations decreased while K content slightly increased during storage. Mg and S content was slightly improved due to ageing. The micronutrients Fe, Mn and Zn were detected in both the liquid organic formulations. The total microbial population viz., fungi, bacteria and actinomycetes were significantly influenced by the storage period. The highest fungal population was noticed in 20 weeks old Panchagavyam and 24 weeks old Jeevamrutham. Bacterial count was the highest in 12 weeks old Panchagavyam and 16 weeks old Jeevamrutham. The highest population of actinomycetes was observed in 12 weeks old Panchagavyam and Jeevamrutham. All the treatments of Panchagavyam were free from Escherichia coli whereas it was detected in some of the treatments of Jeevamrutham, The field experiment consisted of 7 treatments including four best treatments selected based on the results of first experiment (12 and 20 weeks old Jeevamrutham and 24 and 20 weeks old Panchagavyam), water spray, commercial organic formulation and package of practices recommendations, KAU. Organic manures were applied in cucumber plots as per the package of practices recommendations (ad hoc) for organic farming: Crops in all the treatments except T7. Weekly foliar spray of liquid organic formulations was started 20 DAS. The biometric observations were recorded at 30 and 60 DAS. The available nutrient content (NPK) and total microbial population of soil were significantly improved with the application of liquid organic formulations. The treatment receiving 20 weeks old Jeevamrutham registered the highest available soil N (245.02 kg ha-1) and K (343.02 kg ha-1). The highest population of fungi (6.25 x 104cfu g-1), bacteria (110.83 x106cfu g-1) and actinomycetes (26.83 x105cfu g-1) was also detected in soil receiving 20 weeks old Jeevamrutham. Application of Jeevamrutham contributed the highest number of fruits per plant (11.08), volume of fruits per plant (3320.68 cm3), weight of fruits (3.32 kg plant-1) and yield (28.92 Mg ha-1) resulting in maximum gross return, net return and B: C ratio (3.05). The results of the present investigation revealed the possibility of storing panchagavyam up to six months and Jeevamrutham up to five months without quality deterioration. Foliar spray of Panchagavyam and Jeevamrutham has proved to promote the yield of cucumber.